How do I make use of my French chèque énergie voucher?

Reader question: How do I use my chèque énergie? It came with a document called an attestation sur l’honneur for gas and electricity.

The chèque énergie is to be used for paying your energy bills, for example it can be used towards your payments to:

• Electricity and gas suppliers

• Suppliers of domestic heating oil

• Sellers of wood and other biomass fuels for heating or producing hot water

• Retirement homes, towards your energy bills in the home.

A directory of different bodies accepting them can be found online at this link.

There are several ways to use it.

Read more: Explainer: Who will receive France's €100-€200 extra energy aid

Firstly, you can post the chèque énergie voucher to your gas or electricity supplier in payment, or part payment of your latest bill, making use of the directory above for their details, or your last bill or payment calendar letter from the supplier.

If doing this you should include with it a copy of a document proving your relationship with the organisation, eg. a previous bill with your customer details on it. If you have a customer number, you should write it on the back of the voucher.

If you do not have a new bill to be paid yet, you can still send it in and the amount will be deducted from the next one.

You can also give it / send it to firms in payment of a purchase of wood or heating oil etc.

It is also possible to pay gas and electricity bills with the voucher online at this site by making use of the number printed on the energy cheque (you need to click the blue ‘continuer’ button).

Read also: Rising energy bills in France: we recap the aid available in 2023

We are not sure the exact nature of the attestation you are referring to. Energy cheques are sometimes sent out with an attestation proving the right to certain legal rights associated with being an energy cheque beneficiary, so this could be what this document is.

These rights include not having to pay any fees for starting a new electricity or gas supply service, and certain protections in the case of difficulties with paying gas or electricity bills.

Otherwise, there is for example, an attestation sur l’honneur (sworn statement) to be signed by people benefiting from a special extra energy cheque for domestic heating oil, in the case where their heating is run on a collective basis in a block of flats.

If you are unsure about any specifics as to how to use the cheque, there is a free helpline for questions about the energy cheque (in French) at 0805 204 805.

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